Swimming bath peeping tom escapes jail (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Swimming bath peeping tom escapes jail

5:03pm Thursday 1st March 2007 in Swindon By Gazette Reporter

A pervert caught pointing a camera under the cubicle of a swimming pool changing room while naked children were inside has walked free from court.

Stephen Reynolds was trying to get snaps of a six-year-old girl and her 10-year-old brother as they got dressed after being in the baths.

But the 49-year-old was put on a three year probation order with the condition that he completes a sex offenders programme.

The children's father caught Reynolds as he spied on them at the Oasis leisure centre at Easter last year.

But the pervert managed to destroy the camera before it could be examined to find out what was on it.

Claire Marlow, prosecuting, told Swindon Crown Court today the dad had gone to the pool with his children on Monday, April 17, last year.

She said they went into a family changing cubicle at about 2pm and were drying off when the boy noticed a camera being held under the wall.

"The son said to the father 'Daddy, there's a camera on the floor' and pointed and saw a camera pointed towards them held by two hands.

"It was pointing towards them under the cubicle wall," she said.

At the time the young girl was naked in the cubicle as she was drying herself and getting changed.

The dad went round to the neighbouring door and smashed through it to find the defendant inside with the camera.

"He shouted at Mr Reynolds to give him the camera and Mr Reynolds responded by saying he would call the police.

"Other members of staff came along and that gave Mr Reynolds the opportunity to run off.

"He ran off and smashed the camera and made sure it was smashed to pieces by stamping on it."

The police were called and Reynolds was arrested, she said, and he told officers that he was unemployed, not in a relationship and had been drinking that morning.

"He said he smashed the camera because pictures of his own daughter were on it and panicked not knowing what the police would think about it," she said.

He said that as he was changing the camera fell on the floor and after shouting the man burst through the door.

Reynolds, of Reading Street, Railway Village, pleaded guilty to a charge of attempted voyeurism.

Chris Smyth, defending, said that his client accepts that he has a problem and wants to get help for it.

"He accepts what he did was unacceptable and asks for assistance to deal with it. Even before this offence he raised it with his GP," he said.

"He accepts he has an attraction to young girls and is willing to address the problem."

Passing sentence Judge Douglas Field said: "The offence to which you have pleaded guilty is a serious matter.

"Just think what went through the father's mind when he took his young children on a pleasant outing to the swimming bath and there is you with a camera trying to take photographs of a young girl naked.

"My first instinct when I read these papers was that you should be severely punished and sent to prison."

But pointing out that were he to be jailed it would not be for a long enough sentence for him to get help he imposed the community order.

He said Reynolds must complete the Thames Valley Sex Offenders Programme and banned him from working with children for life.

He also imposed a Sexual Offences Prevention Order restricting his liberty.